Crunchy pays it down....£20k...the final chapter

crunch_time

Morning diary!

First of the month means another £275 off the loan bringing it to £15,094. Next month we will be in the £14 xxxx which is great progress!

Total debt stands at £19,119 so we will be sub £19k by the end of the month.

Food shopping today so meal planning later and maybe a trip to the park as its so nice again.

Happy Thursday everyone!
Crunchy x

kirtsypoos

Going into the next thousand is such an amazing feeling, going under the next thousand on both a single debt and total debt must feel fantastic!

belleandthebudget

Congrats, Crunchy - what a great milestone and so close!

crunch_time

Morning diary!

So the hubs is away this week and not back till Friday.

As I have said before, my plans are to be as frugal as possible during October. We did a shop on Saturday and I have plenty of food in so this week I am going to make sure that I don't go to the shop for anything and learn some new healthy recipes. We are trying to go as sugar free as possible.

I'm not planning to go anywhere so it will just be petrol to and from work.

At the weekend we have a day out planned with friends but will take a picnic with us so it will just be petrol and entrance free to the attraction we are going to. The only other expense is going to be wood for a much needed DIY project.

The following week DS has a birthday party so it will just be a present for that (£10). That weekend we have no plans at the moment and planning to keep it that way. Lots of trips to the park and walks me thinks!!

I then get paid the following week so 2 weeks today, and the hubs is away again that week.

Been thinking over the weekend how much we need for the house again and trying to resist spending money on the credit card and then paying for it later on furniture. Husband really would like a new desk as a priority but since he is working away for 2 in the next 3 weeks I'm trying to put it off for as long as possible!!

I have a to do list as long as my arm and trying so hard to get on with things whilst being with my children instead of plonking them down in front of cbeebies!!

Onwards and upwards!

Crunchy xx

crunch_time

Morning diary,

Nothing to update on the money front today. All just ticking along nicely. I get paid in 10 days. Woohoo!!! Currently agonising over whether to pause the debt paying off till after Christmas and get some essential furniture. I'm not sure how much longer we can put it off. We don't have a wardrobe or chest of drawers so all our clothes are currently in piles all over the bedroom floor!! And have been for 8 months now.......

In other news DD will be 1 in a few weeks time! When did that happen? She is walking and saying a few words and is such a happy baby. DS is displaying some real challenging behaviour at the moment. He has gone back to hitting me when he doesn't get his own way and goes whole days pretending to be a baby which is really frustrating for trying to get basic things done.

its been a challenging month at work too with children's difficult behaviour, the death of a close colleague and some old battles rearing their ugly heads not to mention just the stresses and strains of the job anyhow. All this has put a lot in perspective. I'm so hard on myself. I can never see how well I'm doing I just compare myself to too high standards and think 'that's great but its not good enough. I can do better next time.' As a result I constantly feel like I'm being berated by people instead of feeling confident in myself.

Life has changed so much since the little people arrived. I feel like I've lost some of my identity and don't feel like I have anything that's just for me anymore. I woke up this morning thinking that this debt free wannabe journey can be the thing that is just for me. Quietly heading towards my goals one step at a time without beating myself up. A good day is when I have done my best, made choices I am happy with and we are all happy and healthy.

Sorry for the rant but I feel sooo much better now!

Washing is on, baby is having her first nap, got a few bits to do this morning but then will treat the kids to soft play this afternoon. Or something similar.

Onwards and upwards!

Crunchy xx

sugarcube84

I think we all feel like we have lost some of ourselves when we have kids and it is so easy to drown in the monotony of washing, tidying, cleaning,cooking, children that you can't see a time when you will get some time for yourself. My advice is no one is ever going to hand it to you so now when you need a time out and take it.


My ds is 5 now, morning are a mad rush to get us all clean, fed, dressed and to school/work. Then at night its homework, dogs, do tea, feed ds, bath, bed for ds and while I'm doing that its a couple of jobs like a quick tidy round/dishes/hoover/put a load on. Essentially its busy, busy, busy until ds goes to bed and then regardless of jobs that might need doing I stop. Sometimes its a bath sometimes a book or my exercise dvd but I take time to myself before hubby gets home.


As long as everyone is clean fed and happy it doesn't matter if the house isn't perfect!

crunch_time

Thanks sugarcube!! You are so right. Damn pinterest!!

Right I have officially decided to park the 'chuck everything we have at debt' mentality for a few months and focus on purchasing stuff for the house that we need. We do actually need this stuff they are definatley not just wants!!

- wardrobe for us
- chest of drawers for us
- duvet cover and pillowcases for us.
- 2 x fitted sheets for DS
- mattress protector for DS
- Towel for each of the children
- bath mat
- new sheet for us.
- 2 x desks for the office
- floor for the office
- rug for the office
- office organising stuff
- new cushions for the sofa
- new table and chairs for the kitchen.

I'm calling this 'phase 1' as there are bits of furniture we will need for the children's bedrooms and new bedside tables for us but we can get those gradually over the next year or so.

Everything I buy will be the best quality I can afford and I have spent ages researching bedroom furniture especially.

So when I get paid a week on Monday I shall focus on the soft furnishing stuff and the chest of drawers.

We still have money in the bank for the desks.

We are off out today to a local attraction with friends. Should cost £30 to get in but will take a picnic to offset some of the cost. That's it for now!

Happy Saturday everyone!

Crunchy x

belleandthebudget

Sounds like a great plan, Crunchy. I've found that when I buy cheap place holder things I actually just end up spending more because I have to replace them.

sugarcube84

I tried focusing everything on debt and not spending a penny on the house and found that I couldn't do it I was fed up of living like that. I too did without similar things to you and soon came to realise things like bath mats, towels, sheets are essentials. Now I make sure I budget for the house jobs/things we need, yes it means we are paying off our debt slower than we could have but it gives us a much needed balance between servicing our debts and finishing off our house so we can look at moving in the future.


So far this year we have landscaped the back garden, put up a new garage and done the driveway/front garden (a bit of turf!!). Next year it will be the kitchen (units/appliance already bought and stored) and re decorate with a view to putting it on the market next summer.


There has to be some balance.

crunch_time

Evening diary!

Paid work done for the week! Now onto household work for the rest of the week!

So I have done some online window shopping for the red items below....

crunch_time wrote: »

- wardrobe for us
- chest of drawers for us
- duvet cover and pillowcases for us.
- 2 x fitted sheets for DS
- mattress protector for DS
- Towel for each of the children
- bath mat
- new sheet for us.
- 2 x desks for the office
- floor for the office
- rug for the office
- office organising stuff
- new cushions for the sofa
- new table and chairs for the kitchen.

And included a sewing machine bag and some shoe cupboard organisation items and the total will come to £775. Which sounds like a lot but £385 is for a chest of drawers and the rest is soft furnishings etc.

I'm feeling good about it because the house feels a bit more sorted but at the same time trying not to think about the fact that that money would pay off half my overdraft!!! Eek!

I had a fleeting moment of buying a new table and chairs ready for Christmas as we have my parents coming over so 'it would be nice.' But my car is due back in the garage tomorrow for the 4th time in the last 6 months making us rethink our finances again to support buying a new car sooner rather than later.

I need to be rid of the overdraft and it be Jan/Feb time before we can do it. I shall check my credit file in January and see where we are and in the meantime test drive some cars so we are ready and know what we can afford.

I'm going to do my best to budget for the rest of the year and make detailed plans for Christmas and not go over them. There are 3 pay days left. I can do this. This is my thing.

Onwards and upwards

Crunchy xx